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PlayOwl
A square red paper box with its matching lid being lowered onto it.
The finished project.

Origami · folding only

Box with Fitted Lid

  • Confident (level 4 of 5)
  • 25 min
  • 12 steps
  • Ages 8–14 (a guide, not a rule)
  • No scissors
  • No glue
  • No adult help needed
Start Making Print

This is the traditional masu box. You fold the box from one square, then fold the lid the same way from a square about 1 cm (1/4 in) wider, which makes the lid just big enough to slide over the box. A 150 mm square makes a box about 53 mm wide and 26 mm tall. Fill it with tiny treasures or use it as a gift box.

Before you start

You need

Decorating (optional): Use patterned paper, or draw on the lid square before you fold it: the middle of the paper becomes the top of the lid.

No square of paper for the box? Any two squares work if the lid square is about 6% bigger than the box square: for example 200 mm for the box and 212 mm for the lid (8 in and 8 1/2 in). Thin printer paper makes a softer box; origami paper folds most neatly.

How to place the paper before the first step
Your paper: Start with the 150 mm box square, white side up, flat edges at the top and bottom.
  • Valley fold: blue dashes. Fold toward you, like a valley.
  • Crease: a thin gray line where you folded before.
  • Rotate: turn the model on the table; the number says how far.

Step by step

Each step shows what to do (left) and how it should look after (right).

  1. Step 1: fold and unfold, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 1 result Result
    Step 1 of 12 Fold and unfold Fold the square in half corner to corner, then unfold. Fold it in half the other way and unfold.
  2. Step 2: valley fold, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 2 result Result
    Step 2 of 12 Valley fold Fold all four corners in to meet at the center point.
  3. Step 3: rotate, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 3 result Result
    Step 3 of 12 Rotate Turn the paper partway around so a flat edge is at the bottom, like a square.
  4. Step 4: fold and unfold, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 4 result Result
    Step 4 of 12 Fold and unfold Fold the top edge down to the center line and unfold. Fold the bottom edge up to the center line and unfold.
  5. Step 5: fold and unfold, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 5 result Result
    Step 5 of 12 Fold and unfold Do the same from the sides: fold the left edge and then the right edge to the center line, unfolding each time.
  6. Step 6: unfold, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 6 result Result
    Step 6 of 12 Unfold Unfold the top and bottom corners. Leave the left and right corners folded in.
  7. Step 7: valley fold, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 7 result Result
    Step 7 of 12 Valley fold Fold the left and right sides up along the creases so they stand as two walls. The ends start to rise and their corners fold inward.
  8. Step 8: push, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 8 result Result
    Step 8 of 12 Push Push the far end up straight so it becomes the third wall. Its corners fold inside against it.
  9. Step 9: valley fold, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 9 result Result
    Step 9 of 12 Valley fold Fold the point over the far wall and down into the box. Press it flat on the floor so it holds the corners in.
  10. Step 10: put together, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 10 result Result
    Step 10 of 12 Put together Repeat at the near end: push it up into a wall, then fold its point over and down into the box. The box is done.
  11. Step 11: put together, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 11 result Result
    Step 11 of 12 Put together Now fold the lid: take the bigger square (159 mm, 6 1/4 in) and fold it exactly like the box, steps 1 to 10. (A second piece of paper: the slightly bigger square for the lid.)
  12. Step 12: place, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 12 result Result
    Step 12 of 12 Place Turn the lid upside down and lower it over the box. Its floor is about 3 mm wider, so it slides down over the walls.
A square red paper box with its matching lid being lowered onto it.

You made it!

Yours may look a little different. That is part of making things by hand.

Print the steps

If something goes wrong

The lid will not go on.

Check that the lid square really is 9 mm (1/4 in) bigger, and that its corners met exactly at the center in step 2. Press the box walls straight and try again.

The lid is loose and falls off.

The lid square is too big. Try a square only 5 mm (about 3/16 in) bigger than the box square.

The walls lean outward.

Crease the wall folds firmly, and press the folded-in points flat on the floor of the box. They lock the walls in place.

The corners will not fold inside.

Pinch the corner crease from the outside while you push the end up; it folds in along the creases you made in steps 4 and 5.

Helpful hints

  • The corners must meet exactly at the center in step 2; small gaps make the box crooked.
  • Fold the box first, then the lid, so you know the steps when you fold the bigger square.

The traditional masu box (a square measuring box), with a second masu folded from a larger square as the lid. Diagrams drawn for PlayOwl.

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